Man Shoots Girlfriend In the Back Over Zombie Dispute

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Man Shoots Girlfriend In the Back Over Zombie Dispute

HEMPSTEAD, New York — A Long Island man faces second-degree attempted murder charges after he allegedly shot his girlfriend in the back after a heated argument over zombies.

According to AM New York, Jared M. Gurman, 26, pleaded not guilty to attempted murder, but his lawyer did acknowledge that Gurman shot his girlfriend, 27-year-old Jessica Gelderman, in the back with a .22-caliber semi-automatic rifle during the early-morning hours on Monday.

Police say that the bullet pierced Gelderman’s lung and diaphragm and shattered her ribs. She remains in stable condition at a Long Island hospital.

The argument, police say, started when Gurman and Gelderman – who had been dating for over three years – had a disagreement over the AMC television show The Walking Dead, and whether or not the scenarios depicted in the show could ever happen in real life.

“I just know that he felt very adamant that there could be some type of military mishap that would result in some sort of virus or something being released that could cause terrible things to happen,” said Nassau Det. Lt. Raymond Cote, who added that Gelderman thought her boyfriend’s beliefs were “ridiculous.”

The argument escalated through the evening via text messaging. When Gelderman returned to Gurman’s apartment to calm him down, police say that Gurman pointed the rifle and fired a shot into Gelderman’s back as she climbed the stairs.